This invention relates to caps which are adapted to be mounted on containers. Typical such caps have threads which engage corresponding threads on a coupling portion of the container. Such cap may, or may not, include tamper evident structure which provides an indication that the cap has been removed from the container, thus to indicate that the contents of the container have been compromised to outside input.
For example, single service bottles of drinkable liquid and/or food may include such tamper evident structure.
This invention is directed especially at caps which are sized to fit onto bottles and/or pouches where the coupling portion of the container can be used as a dispenser to dispense the container contents directly into the mouth of a user of such contents.
The invention is also directed to containers which are used to contain food products for use by infants and small children, including such containers which may be produced in large quantities on highly-automated machinery, or which may be produced on less automated machinery with the supplement of additional manual labor.
In containers intended for the above uses, it can be important that the container and/or the cap provide some indication that the seal on the container has been broken and/or at least that an initial cap removal has occurred.
It is also important that such caps not pose a choking hazard to the user, e.g. a small child, once the cap has been removed from the container.
A variety of caps have been proposed which include tamper evident structure. Representative of such teachings is U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,095 Marshall et al. Marshall at al teach a cap having a tamper evident, transversely-extending ring, which has an axially-extending split line 46 internal to the ring which separates one segment of the ring from the other, and a plurality of axially-extending breakable bridges 42 which also break when the cap is disconnected from the bottle.
US Published Patent Application 2009/0023963 Bisio teaches a cap which has both tamper evident structure as “guarantee seal 10” and “safety passages 21” which allow passage of air through the cap, top-to-bottom “if the cap is accidentally swallowed”. However, if swallowed, such cap will find the path of least resistance in the person's airway. In so doing, the cap will likely become turned such that the sides of the cap face in the axial direction, thus minimizing the cross-section of the cap when viewed along the axial length of the airway. In such orientation, the cap of Bisio has no provision for passage of air through such cap which is in a person's airway.
Further, no cap known to Applicant has an outer wall for manipulation by the user, an inner wall for engaging a coupling on a container and a tamper evident ring where the diameter of the bottom of the inner wall is at least as great as the diameter of the tamper evident ring, such that the bottom of the inner wall supports the tamper evident ring against axial loads imposed from below the bottom of the cap.
The applicant is not aware of any cap which facilitates the positioning of machine fingers which engage and tighten the cap on the coupling or bottle.
The applicant herein is not aware of any cap which has an outer surface of an outer wall which is textured to facilitate manual or machine handling and/or transport of the respective cap, or container onto which the cap has been mounted.
Further, the applicant herein is not aware of any cap whose structure facilitates removal of the cap from a patient's throat/airway after the cap has been swallowed.
Accordingly, there is a need for caps which facilitate the positioning of machine-mounted tightening fingers.
There is also a need for caps which use a minimum number of frangible/breaking elements so as to minimize the number of broken ends which might injure a user.
There is further a need for caps which provide for passage of air through the cap if the cap is accidentally swallowed, irrespective of the orientation of the cap in the person's airway.
There is also a need for caps which have tamper evident structure which remains attached to such cap when such cap is disconnected from the container, because such attached tamper evident structure serves as an incremental further hindrance to swallowing such caps.
There is still further a need for caps where the bottom of the inner wall supports a tamper evident ring against axial loads imposed from below the bottom of the cap.
There is also a need for a cap whose structure is textured and otherwise designed to facilitate manual and/or machine handling and/or transport of the respective cap, or container onto which the cap has been mounted.
There is further a need for a cap which facilitates, by its design, removal of the cap from a patient's throat/airway after the cap has been swallowed.
There is also a need for a method of reducing risk of a person not being able to breathe after accidentally swallowing a cap, irrespective of any orientation of the cap in the person's airway.
These and other needs are alleviated, or at least attenuated, or partially or completely satisfied, by novel products and methods of the invention.